An epitome of Guangzhou’s foreign trade, Shamian Island has become a renowned tourist area and leisure resort. As people lose themselves in the exotic scenery, they may be surprised to find a Chaozhou Tea Museum hiding in a 110-year-old European-style building.
The Chaozhou Fenghuang Dancong Tea Museum - Tea Space was opened to the public this summer. With modern tea drinks available, various tea sets and tea utensils on display, the Museum aims to offer visitors a taste of the tea culture of Chaozhou, a historic city in east Guangdong.
Boasting a tea production history of more than 900 years, Chaozhou is known as the home of Dancong Tea. In Chinese, “Dan” means “single” . The name “Dancong” originates from that when picking Dancong tea leaves, people will pick from one tree at a time and leaves from different trees will also be separately processed.
Dancong Tea features repeated infusions. Bright soup color, mellow and fresh taste and lingering finishes have made it sought-after among tea lovers. The higher the mountain the tea leaves are grown from, sweeter the taste.
“As of now, there are more than 10,000 one hundred-year-old or so mother Dancong trees on the Fenghuang Mountain, among which around 3,800 are over 200 years old. Some of them have already been listed as national treasures,” introduced Wei Qimin, curator of the Museum and also a Fenghuang local.
A perfect cup of tea can’t be made without unique tea brewing techniques. In addition to quality tea leaves, Chaozhou is also famous for the Kungfu Tea Ceremony, an exquisite tea-making art that conveys the spirit of purity, elegance and peace.
According to Wei Qimin, they plan to regularly invite professionals and inheritors of intangible cultural heritage to offer tea courses and tea brewing workshops in the Museum, so that consumers can soak up traditional culture with a modern tea drink in hand.
"Today many museums are rather static, but we hope our customers can experience tea culture and learn tea knowledge through modern and vivid experiences", thus falling in love with Chaozhou’s culture, Mr. Wei envisioned it.
Author | Abby, Lily (intern)
Video-shooting | Eastbrook, Holly
Video-editing | Eastbrook
Reporter | Alice
Editor | Wing, Olivia, Monica, Jerry
